


Blue eyes

by PimlockHolmes



Category: EXO (Band), SHINee
Genre: Alternate Universe - Mermaid, Fluff, M/M, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-20
Updated: 2019-01-20
Packaged: 2019-10-13 08:35:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17484782
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PimlockHolmes/pseuds/PimlockHolmes
Summary: "Blue eyes" is a oneshot based around the pairing TaeKai. This oneshot is based on the prompt of Kyzuzu and a friend of theirs. This oneshot features TaeKai as mermen, with Jongin as a tropical reef merman and Taemin as a deep sea merman.





	Blue eyes

* * *

 

Jongin twirled in the water as he dodged Sehun's attack with the trident. He laughed as Sehun growled and teased the boy with his tailfins. 'Come and get me Sehunnieeee!'

'Shut it!' Sehun snapped and rushed forwards again, his trident firmly pointed at Jongin. 'One day I'll get you!'

Jongin laughed and twirled around Sehun again, strong water currents behind him as he swam. His tribe of mermen at the tropical reef was militaristic of nature, yet they never warred with other tribes. Young mermen were trained to become soldiers and guardians, donning tridents, spears and shields, but they only had to defend the gatherers and the hunters.

And so, Jongin and Sehun, young as they were, were trained to fight. Only a fine sixteen monsoons old, they mostly played during their training. Jongin was already fairly capable with a trident and would soon be able to move on to the shield and spear. Sehun however had more trouble with the trident and thus required more practice before they could both move on.

'Sehun! Jongin! Come get something to eat!' Their captain, Joonmyun, yelled. 'Before Baekhyun eats everything!'

'Oh no!' Jongin and Sehun quickly swam to the caves under the reef where their equipment was stored and, twirling and spinning as they did. Their tribe lived on a tropical reef, colours lit up the sea during the day and at night the colours brightened the darkness under the moonlight. Their people were also colourful, their purple, blue and green tails adorned with beautiful colourful patterns.

Sehun lost his trident in the corner and Jongin quickly grabbed a kelp shrimp wrap. Quickly filling his mouth with the food, he turned nimbly and saw that Baekhyun had already consumed more than five big wraps with crab and lobster. Captain Joonmyun sighed and grabbed a seaweed wrap on the other end of the table. 'Boys, we'll go on a scouting trip soon.'

Sehun cheered. 'Yeeees!'

Jongin hummed contently. The scouting trips were always the most fun because they could use their weapons in real situations too, battling sharks, manta rays and eels or hunting smaller fish for food. And they could explore every nook and cranny near their reef. They had found ships, sunken oil platforms and caverns to the core of the earth, Jongin imagined at least, and many more things.

'The sea has grown uneasy.' Their captain stated. 'Though we've experienced worse, we don't want to be surprised by calamity. We don't know what's causing it, it may be a herd of whales, the humans drilling for minerals or another tribe gearing up for war. Be vigilant.'

The young mermen nodded. The only downside of being a tribe of tropical mermen was that there were a lot of other tribes around. The tribes who lived in the depths of the oceans had that problem less so, but they missed the sunlight that Jongin loved.

On his days off, he and his friends would go for the surface and spy on the humans. The humans were evil and mean usually, so they were careful, but they saw them do such silly things. But Jongin mostly enjoyed the sun on his skin and hair and didn't pay much attention to the silly humans. They would play with the dolphins and swirl through schools of fish.

But more frequently than they wanted, they also had to flee from sharks. So the elders were not that happy with them getting near to the surface, especially because the humans could spot them and come for them too. The dangers of humans and sharks was enough for the elders to prohibit them from going to the surface, but the youngsters usually didn't listen.

'We'll venture east, deeper into the ocean. Make sure you're well rested and ready for anything. Brush up your armour and sharpen your weapons.' Captain Joonmyun cocked his head at the armour stands and the weapon racks. 'Tomorrow at dawn we leave. For now, dismissed.'

 

Taemin spun through the water, swimming for his life. Darkness had engulfed him more than ever before but he didn't care, the few things he could see were of no importance to him. The movements in the water told him more and more, and the more he was told the less he could believe his senses. Never had he even heard of sharks together as a school, let alone actually working together in a hunt.

He dodged an attack next to him. The goblin sharks around him clouded his senses. He heard his friends swim after him and the sharks, trying to rescue him. Taemin made a sharp turn, throwing off some of the sharks but also baring one of his flanks. He felt sharp teeth scratch his skin, his senses on one side failing him immediately as his lateral line was damaged.

The darkness felt even darker and the angry sounds of the sharks around him clouded the shrill cries of his friends. He could smell his own blood and he knew he wasn't going to survive this if he didn't think of something soon. Desperately widening his eyes, frantically spinning and twirling, he tried to get his eyes to spy him an escape.

Until he felt a strong shift in the currents around him. His body not able to react immediately like the sharks, weakened by the small attacks it had endured and the sharp dodged he had had to do, he felt himself swept away and pummelled through the ocean. The cries of his friends, which had already been muffled, died away completely as he shot down the forbidden [current](https://youtu.be/LJEDtKnghIY).

Taemin's broken senses could make out that this was the current his tribe had forbidden anyone from ever using, as it was long, tiring and dangerous. It would truly pummel you through the ocean, through rock fields and constricting kelp forests. It was forbidden because no one had ever, ever, returned from it.

Taemin held his side, feeling the warm blood in the cold water. He tried to see everything that came towards him so rapidly and dodged as much as he could, yet he felt the stings of rocks and venomous plants in his torso and tail. He involuntarily spun through the stream, trying to fight it and slowly himself down, but all of that ended in a shrill whine when he hit a stone column and folded his tail to the point it almost broke.

Could he try to swim with it and go even faster? His eyes weren't the best around and even at this speed he had trouble seeing anything at all, why go even faster?

He tried to remember the course of the current, where it would bend and were it would stop. He had been swept away miles and miles from his home, so going back wasn't an option until he had gotten some rest, but maybe he could at least escape the current at a sharp bend?

… Oh crap. The rock field was coming, Taemin saw the first jagged rocks appear, the monstrosities (ships, but Taemin didn't know that) that had been caught in them. Taemin shook with the current, avoiding every rock he possibly could. He bashed his shoulder against one of the rocks. His wound. His other arm. He felt the rock tear at his tailfins, his voice crying of pain as they were mutilated viciously with the rocks tearing away parts of skin and scales.

Taemin managed to avoid certain death by dodging a column with a steel bar sticking out from it and with that, fell away from the current. He swirled to the side, towards the surface and brighter waters, lifelessly and forced his quills to keep working.

Even though his entire body wanted to rest and stop.

 

Jongin looked in the obsidian mirror as he tied up his brass cuirass at his sides. He strapped his trident to his side and put on his brass helmet. He sighed for a moment but nodded quickly. Scouting trip! This'll be fun! He saw out of his cavern and headed straight for his captain at their barracks.

The captain hummed satisfied as Jongin neared him and inspected the boy's armour thoroughly. 'Good work, Jongin.'

Jongin felt pride accumulate in his stomach and smiled. 'I cleaned them as much as I could!'

'They look great, Jongin… Ah there's Sehun.'

Sehun swam up to them and got his share of compliments and remarks. More and more joined them and Joonmyun quickly calmed everyone down. 'Recruits, today we are scouting to see disturbances in the ocean. We are looking for anything. If possible and safe, check above the surface too, storms may be brewing and the humans might have started warring again. If a human sees you, hide immediately and don't come out until dark. I doubt they'll see you, but be careful.'

A recruit from the back, Minseok, raised his hand. 'Do we go in pairs?'

'Because of the sheer size of the area we have to cover, we scout individually. If in danger, rather flee than fight. Hiding and fleeing isn't cowardice, it's survival. Especially when humans are involved. If you are forced to fight, take out the weakest links and try to flee again. You'll be safe when you reach the tribe.'

The recruits nodded and all got assigned a direction to explore. They were to explore as much as they could. If unsafe, they were allowed to go back to the tribe at dusk. If in danger or any other reason, they could also go back at any time. If possible, try to keep exploring and use your survival skills to stay safe in the night. If they hadn't found anything interesting for miles and miles, it was safe to assume no danger laid in wait in that direction.

Jongin was assigned to go fully east, not to the north and not to the south, but just east. Jongin took off, not spinning and twirling enthusiastically like he would always do, but now just swimming easily. He was in no rush, better he'd preserve his energy, especially when wearing the armour. His trident ready in his hands, he nimbly swam across the reefs towards the rising sun.

He saw the fishes flee from him, some crabs being crabs and not looking at him at all, some dolphins teasingly following him. Jongin felt an odd stroke against his backfin and stopped. He twirled to see if he saw anything that could have caused it, but nothing. He swam up to the surface and peeked carefully. Nothing.

Jongin hummed and swam back down, noticing how the dolphin circled him playfully.

'Hey, what are you up to?' Jongin asked.

The dolphins swam off and Jongin followed them for a bit. They stopped at a shipwreck and Jongin hummed, his trident ready. He knew sharks liked these places and he approached the ship carefully. It seemed like it had only recently sunk, but the ship seemed old. The sand around it hadn't really settled in yet, the water was still unruly and most importantly, it still reeked of death.

Jongin tapped the side to stir up the fish hiding inside and schools of them flew out. That was a good sign, at least no carnivores inside. Jongin swam in carefully and looked at the dead sailor against the sealing. Poor guy. There wasn't really anything he could loot from this place, usually humans would come looking for it anyway, but it was peculiar that a ship had sunk.

Though it couldn't be reason for the sea acting up. The ship was way too small for that to be the sole reason, it seemed more like this shipwreck being a consequence of the unruly sea. Jongin left it and watched the dolphins, still begging Jongin to follow them.

'Is it really important?'

The dolphins twirled enthusiastically.

'Is it what I'm looking for?'

Their twirling stopped slightly, almost pouty looks on their faces.

'Is it exciting?'

Happy spinning again. Jongin chuckled and followed them once more. They easily moved through the ocean, no predator seemed to be around at all, and the dolphins halted, swimming around happily. Jongin didn't see anything fun in particular, except an old fighter airplane, but that was old news. Until he felt the water move under him more strongly, his body going down slowly.

He looked down and saw that the earth had cracked open, the water running into the newly opened fissure powerfully. Jongin swam away. That was a good reason, but still a bit small to be the sole reason for this moody ocean of theirs. Jongin frowned. How could this have happened? Had there been a quake they didn't notice? That seemed o… odd… He saw three strong metal legs standing in the reef and a dark platform on top of them. That could be a good reason, humans are mining here.

Jongin sighed. Why did they always mine and why did it always seem like they didn't care about the sea? Jongin couldn't stop them and trying to stop them would only endanger himself. Jongin knew the humans would probably only be here for a year or two and then piss off again, but still it was annoying that they were so close.

Jongin swam up, peeked and saw the platform now. Above water it seemed further away and a lot smaller, but it was there now.

Moving on, to see if more sources could be disturbing mother sea, he swam further east, the dolphins still following him happily. He ventured through caves, fought a single shark with his trident and the dolphins running interference and explore large coral reefs.

Until he approached a cliff. The seabed dropped quickly, entering the deep ocean. Jongin gulped, he had never actually ventured this far, but maybe he should just see and check quickly. He couldn't spend the night there, he would have to dive too deep and he wouldn't be able to see anything down there. So best was to spend the night here at the cliff, venture into the deep at dawn and return before dusk, spending another night at the cliff before swimming back home. Jongin nodded. That was a good plan.

Jongin started to set up a small cover to sleep under, hauling some planks of a shipwreck from the seabed. He hummed as he caught a fish with his bare hand, twisting off its head and eating it raw. He gave a soft moan of delight as it was delicious, quickly taking his place under the cover. He laid down on seabed and peered out over the cliff, into the wide and open ocean.

… What was that white thing?

Jongin got up from his cover. … Was that a merman? If so, he didn't look okay.

Jongin grabbed his trident and swam over the cliff, towards the white entity. Hanging lifelessly in the water, Jongin suspected that the… definitely a merman was wounded, ill or dead. But just waiting in the water to be eaten by a shark was no end to a life.

Jongin caught the boy's hand. 'Hello?'

A soft moan escaped the boy's lips.

He's alive! Jongin gulped. 'Come!' He softly pulled the boy with him to the small camp he had made. Jongin carefully laid him down on the seabed and looked at the gash in the boy's side. 'That's not good.' He saw the mutilation of the boy's tail fin and whined softly. 'Definitely not good.'

What to do? He couldn't go back after dusk, they would be shark food. But would he manage a night out here? Jongin quickly swam away and caught another fish, preparing it similarly and tearing off small bits to give to the weak merman. 'Please eat something…'

The boy ate a little bit but his face turned sour when he had to swallow. Jongin whined and grabbed a few fistfuls of seaweed, wrapping it around the boy's waist and, with that, the wound. Jongin bit his lip. He was not sure he could do more than this, other than try to feed him and hope he wouldn't die. He was pleased to see the boy was breathing normally.

The sea quickly turned darker around them and Jongin huddled closer to the wounded merman. He took off his helmet and went the white hair of the merman in front of him. He was a deep sea merman for sure, his body white like the fish who resided so deep in the ocean.

Jongin looked at the dark ocean around them. The night would be long, but he couldn't risk letting this boy die.

 

Taemin opened his eyes again. To close them immediately. Lord, that was so bright! He could hardly see anything with all the light, with it he was absolutely blind. He felt himself laying down on a stone bed, lots of things moving around him in the water.

Wrappings around his waist and tail.

He felt himself up, noticing that his shoulder had been wrapped tight too, his movement on one arm severely limited. What had happened to him?

'Ah, you're awake.'

Taemin stilled immediately, trying to focus his senses but to no avail. He felt a soft hand on his cheek, guiding his head. 'I'm over here.'

'Where am I? Who are you?' Taemin could just see a vague black figure in a sea of white.

'You're in the reefs now, one of our recruits found you in the trench, wounded. I'm the tribe's elder.'

The reefs! That's why Taemin couldn't see a damn thing anymore. And he was found too! So this wasn't the afterlife. And…

'What happened to you?'

'I can only remember… Sharks. A lot of sharks.'

'A lot of sharks? As in working together?'

Taemin nodded. 'Goblin sharks…'

The elder sighed. 'You're safe now. The recruit will come to see you later, we had to send him home after he stayed with you for more than a whole day. Can we send word to your tribe? Can you tell us where they live?'

'… You can't get there. You wouldn't be able to see.'

'As I thought.' The elder sighed. 'Rest some more. We've bound your wounds but we… We can't heal your tailfins. You'll be able to use it like normal, but the damages done are permanent.'

Taemin nodded slowly. 'Thank you.'

The dark figure left and Taemin closed his eyes again, trying to recover them from all the light. He widened his quills, breathing out deeply, and tried to sleep a little. His dreams were jagged and sharp, his sleep not pleasant at all and he reached for the pendant around his neck.

…

It was gone! Taemin sat up and tried to pat the stone slab around him. Maybe it fell in his sleep or they took it off during their care or…

'Whoa! Easy now!' A smooth voice rolled through the room and Taemin felt himself pushed down gently. 'What are you looking for?'

The voice was nice and calming. 'My pendant… It's important to me…'

'Pendant?' The voice hummed. 'Let me look.'

Taemin felt the boy, he felt young, swim around him. 'Who are you?'

'Ah! I'm Jongin! I'm the one that found you! You really scared me back there.'

'I'm Taemin.'

'Taemin, I can't seem to find this pendant. What does it look like?'

'… It looks like a golden coin.'

'… Where did you keep it?'

'Around my neck.'

'Oh… I didn't see it when I found you, maybe you lost it in the trench or somewhere else… I'm sorry.'

Taemin gulped. 'It's not your fault.' He felt the boy near him closely.

'Was it important to you?'

'It was given to me when I turned 10 years old by my father.'

'Ah… I'm so sorry. I'll go back tomorrow to see if I can find it.'

'You don't have to…'

'I insist.' Jongin brushed back Taemin's hair. 'Your eyes…' Taemin's eyes were cold and steely. They were blue but Jongin could see the boy didn't look through them. 'Can you see here?'

'Hardly.'

'Can you see better in the dark oceans?'

'I can. It's less light and… I don't know, I just see better. I don't see much though.'

'Want to know what I look like?'

Taemin chuckled. 'Sure.'

'I have a long purple tail and backfin, but my torso is tanned instead of purple. Also I have patterns on my tail.'

'It sounds cute.'

Jongin laughed. 'Thank you!' Jongin looked at Taemin's body. Now the boy was in less danger and their environments was less hostile, Jongin noticed that Taemin was actually really pretty. Like the deep sea fishes, Taemin was white. But perfectly white. He almost gave light here at the surface. Slight stains of pink adorned the rims of his fins, but he was beautifully pearly white.

'How did you bring me here?'

'On my back. We were lucky there were no predators around.'

'Thank you for not abandoning me.'

'I'm just happy I saw you there. The first time I looked I missed you. I'll go looking tomorrow. When you're healed, I'll escort you back to your home.'

'Thank you, Jongin.'

 

Jongin sighed as he looked everywhere at his previous camp at the cliff. He scoured the seabed, looking under rocks and between plants. But nowhere he could find a coin, let alone a golden one. He peeked over the cliff and gulped. He could dive down that deep, but he would be blind.

Jongin concluded that he didn't see a pendant, he hadn't seen one and that he could not find it. Jongin quietly swam back, his mind in thought. He did want to give Taemin something to hold on to. The boy was all alone and Jongin felt… Jongin felt like he was important to Taemin. He had saved Taemin! He had to make sure the boy was safe and happy and healthy.

Jongin swam over to the fighter plane and checked inside, looking for something he could offer Taemin as a substitute. A few shards of glass, a compass, a fish egg-filled chair. Jongin left the wreck and swam further again.

Also Taemin was really pretty. He looked a lot different than the mermen he usually saw, like Sehun. His colours were so different but somehow, he spoke to Jongin. His face did. His eyes. His eyes, the part of Taemin's body that were the most useless to him right now, were so beautifully different than Jongin had ever seen. While Jongin's eyes were black, Taemin's eyes were so beautifully blue.

Jongin hummed as he passed over the fissure created by the mining humans. The sea had calmed around it, so it was safer now, and Jongin stared at the giant machine that dug in the ocean's floor. He saw some rocks fall from it, rubble the humans wouldn't clean up at all. He started to turn his head, but then he saw something twinkle in the water.

Jongin gulped. Going so close the humans was like sticking your head in a shark's mouth. It was an invitation to death. So let's get this over with. Jongin took a deep breath and shot forwards, heading straight for the twinkle in the ocean. He dodged a rock falling from the machine and grabbed the twinkling stone he saw. Spending no time admiring it, he quickly swam away from the dangerous platform and hid in the reef again. He looked at what he was holding and smiled. A sapphire hid in his hand, almost perfectly round.

This was good! Jongin swam away, checking over his shoulder regularly to see if the humans were following him. Zigging and zagging he reached the tribe again before the sun had completely disappeared in the ocean. He went to his cave first to lose his armour, trident and helmet and then quickly moved to the cave Taemin was resting in.

Jongin entered carefully.

'Jongin!' Taemin said.

Jongin smiled. 'How did you know it was me?' The boy hadn't even turned his head towards him.

'I just felt it.' Taemin said, turning his head to Jongin's voice. 'How are you?'

'I'm okay. Bit tired after a day of swimming about. But I'm fine. How are you doing?'

'My tail hurts less, the elder says it's healing well. Tomorrow I can swim again.'

'That's great!' Jongin rested on the stone slab next to Taemin. 'I went to the trench again today, but I couldn't find your pendant… I'm sorry.'

'Oh… It's okay… It's not your fault I lost it. Maybe it happened in the current or during the attack.'

'I did find something for you though. To replace it. I know it's not the same as the coin your father gave you, but it's the least I can do.' Jongin placed the sapphire in Taemin's hand. 'I know you probably can't tell, but it's a gem. A sapphire. I saw it and I thought of you and… I hope you like it.'

Jongin saw a happy smile enter Taemin's face. 'I do! Thank you!'

'I'll take you out swimming tomorrow!' Jongin said cheerfully. 'As your saviour I should be the one helping you.'

Taemin laughed. 'My saviour?'

'Yeah! … Just allow me to call myself that.'

Taemin chuckled. 'Oh my saviour, I can't wait until you take me out swimming tomorrow.'

Hearing Taemin laugh and being happy, made Jongin's heart pound violently. Jongin carefully laid Taemin back down and made sure all the bandages were still in their right place. 'I'm glad you can't wait. But for now, rest a bit more.'

 

Jongin watched as the elder carefully removed Taemin's bandages. 'Your tail seems to be fully healed. As I said, the damages to the fins is… permanent, sadly, but they should function normally. And…' The bandages around Taemin's waist were loosened. 'Your lateral line should be healed now too. It may still feel… cloudy, but with time it'll go back to normal.' His shoulder was freed from bandages too. 'And your shoulder is completely fine.'

Taemin smiled and nodded. 'Thank you so much.'

'As I said, just a quick swim to stretch your fins a bit, but not too much. Jongin, take care that he's not too excited. A nice and easy swim to start.'

Jongin nodded and took Taemin's hand. 'Come! I found us a cave so it's less light for you.'

Taemin let himself be led outside by Jongin and couldn't see the tropical mermen looking at him as if he were a abomination. They stared at him as if he were some kind of animal. Jongin noticed though and gave all of them mean looks, forcing them to turn their heads.

They entered the cave, lit by luminous plants which gave the cavern an eerie light blue look. Taemin cheered. 'I can see something again!'

Jongin laughed. 'Can you see a lot more now?'

'… No, but I can at least see colours and the light doesn't hurt and a little bit of the stuff around me. And… You look beautiful.'

Jongin felt heat enter his cheeks. 'What?'

'… So many colours…'

'Don't…' Jongin couldn't help but blush and smile. 'No, no…'

Taemin spun around and swam deeper into the cave. 'Oh it feels so good to swim again!'

Jongin, still dealing with the compliment on his looks, swam up to Taemin and twirled around him. 'I bet!'

Taemin reached for his neck, where he had stored the sapphire in a small pouch on a necklace that the elder had given him, and took out the gemstone. 'It's really pretty!'

Jongin's heart rejoiced by the sound of Taemin's happiness. 'I'm glad I found it when I did.'

Taemin whirled around a bit and cheered. 'And I'm happy you found this place. It's so nice and dark.'

Jongin laughed. 'Do you really see better in the dark than in the light?'

'Yeah. I'm not used to the light, so that blinds me. I don't really look at things though, I feel them moving a long time before I can see them.'

'So, if you were to close your eyes…'

Taemin closed his eyes.

'And I were to move…' Jongin raised his arm.

'Are you going to hit me?'

'Wow! You're like a shark! They can feel that too!'

'Yep! I don't smell blood though.'

'That's a shame.' Jongin chuckled. 'Taeminnie the shark, coming for you and your kids!'

Taemin laughed and checked his tailfins, his laughter dying away quickly. 'Oh… They're a bit torn.'

Jongin smiled. 'I think it's still pretty. Actually I think… I think that… You know… You're beautiful too. You're so different from what I'm used to and… I just think you're beautiful. Like a pearl.'

Taemin smiled. 'Thank you. To me you're really different. My tribe's mermen all look like me.'

'I hope that I can see them one day.' Jongin smiled. He took Taemin's hand and swam deeper into the cavern. 'Come!'

 

Jongin swam happily towards the cave Taemin resided at and peeked inside. 'Taeminnie!'

'Jonginnie!' Taemin sat up. 'Shouldn't you be practicing?'

'I should! But I just came to ask you if you want to join us! It's cloudy out today so it's not as bright!'

Taemin hummed. 'I'm not really a fighter though…'

'You're not?' Jongin sat down on the slab next to Taemin. 'Don't have training?'

'We don't fight where I'm from…' Taemin said. 'We make idols and tokens. Like my coin. That was a gift my father gave me because it was a gift his father gave him. It's holy to us.'

Jongin tilted his head. 'Oh… So the sapphire I gave you could never replace it?'

Taemin quickly shook his head. 'No, it can! It's just different. When I get home I'll pray for it and it'll be a token of life! You're my saviour and you gave me this. So to me it's a suitable replacement.'

Jongin hummed. 'Then it's fine. But I'm really good! Don't you want to watch your saviour in action?' Come oooon, Jongin really wants you to watch him kick some Sehun-ass!

Taemin laughed. 'I do want to watch you in action.'

'Yes! Come!' Jongin took Taemin's hand and led him to the open area they always used for practice. He made sure Taemin was comfortable and grabbed his trident. 'Soon they'll let me practice with the shield and the spear, but for now I'll have to work with the trident. The shield and spear are a lot more impressive though.'

Taemin chuckled. 'Really now?'

'Yeah!' Jongin smiled and swam away a bit. 'I'll be battling Sehun! Can you see me?'

No, but Jongin didn't really have to know that. 'I can see enough.' But he felt Jongin's presence in the water, so that was enough. He felt the other merman, probably Sehun then, swim up to Jongin and he heard their tridents clash. The other was pushed back, Jongin moved in and made a stab with his trident. The other merman dodged, but barely, and moved back, but kept falling away in dodges and defence as Jongin's stabs and swings were quick and precise.

'Okay! You win!' Sehun yelled and pushed Jongin away. 'Holy crabs, did you practice on your own or something?'

No, Jongin was fuelled by a desire to impress Taemin. 'I just tried something.'

'Really now?' Sehun said. 'Fine, now let me try a bit okay?'

'Yeah.' Jongin took place and let Sehun unload on him, deflecting every attack with ease. Taemin felt another merman closing in.

'Jongin! Sehun! How are you doing?'

'Pretty well.' Jongin said.

'So I've heard.' The new one said. 'You've got an audience today?'

'Ah yes! This is the merman I rescued, Taemin. Taemin, this is my captain Joonmyun.'

Joonmyun quickly swam over to Taemin to give him a hand. 'A pleasure to meet you. We don't usually see the deep sea folk around these parts.'

'I see why.' Taemin said. 'That sun of yours is annoying.'

Jongin laughed. 'It's lovely though!'

Joonmyun chuckled. 'Opinions may vary. Jongin, Sehun, tomorrow both of you can move on to the shield and spear. Make sure you gather them today and make sure they're cared for by tomorrow.'

The two young mermen nodded. They practiced a few more times, Jongin dominating Sehun swiftly if Jongin didn't restrain himself. The captain swam away, looking for his other practicing recruits. Jongin and Sehun continued on for a few more battles, but then quit practicing to recover their strength and energy. Jongin swam over to Taemin and looked at the boy with an excited and inquisitive smile on his face.

'And, did you like it?'

'You seems so awesome when you fight.' Taemin said smiling. 'Really tough and strong!'

Jongin hid a proud smirk. 'How old are you?'

'Fifteens monsoons.'

Oooooh, Jongin is older toooo! 'Sixteen monsoons.'

'It would have been awkward if I had been saved by someone who's younger than I am.'

Jongin laughed and delicately pushed Taemin's shoulder. 'You can't help that though.'

'No, but I'm still glad you're older than I am.' Taemin said. '… Ssst…'

'What?'

'Move!'

Both of them quickly dodged and Jongin saw a itajara lunge at them. Jongin growled and shot forwards with his trident, noticing that Taemin quickly hid somewhere. Lodged deep in the head of the fish, Jongin drove the fish down to the seabed, clogging one of its quills with sand. 'Sehun!'

Sehun, who had been unaware of this predator close to them as well and had been talking to Minseok on the other side of their practicing fields, quickly hurried towards Jongin, stabbing the fish in the gut with his trident. Minseok joined them, piercing the other quills of the fish.

The fish soon stopped fighting and died. Lodged on their tridents, Sehun and Minseok brought the fish to the elder, who would use its stingers for weaponry and jewellery. Jongin swam over to Taemin and caught the boy in his arms. 'Now you're my saviour.' His arms grew tight around Taemin's torso, his lips almost against Taemin's forehead. 'Thank you.'

'Does it feel awkward now that I'm younger and just saved you?'

Jongin chuckled. 'A bit, but I'm still glad you did.'

Jongin felt Taemin rest his head on his shoulder, he felt Taemin's heart pound against his chest and he felt Taemin's arms close around his neck. 'Taeminnie, do you want to sleep in my cave tonight?'

 

Jongin raced around his cave, making sure it looked nice and tidy. He didn't have a lot of stuff for himself, but at least that what he had (a few gems, some tridents and spears, his armour stand, a few potted plants and his sleeping area) should look sort of cared for.

Jongin's cave was located under the reef and thus the roof of his cavern was very colourful. Roots of the reef's plants, the reef itself and many more things spilled through the sealing and gave the dwelling an unique feeling. Jongin had made his sleeping quarters a bit separate from the rest of the cavern, having purposefully dug out a new part of the cave. It was roomy and round and most importantly, Jongin had planted many luminous plants in the sleeping place, so in the night he was lulled to sleep by the soft red, blue and purple lights they emitted.

Jongin had even once scavenged a few sheets and pillows from a ship during his scouting trips (and stolen a few from the beaches during high tide) and made a small nest on the stone slab he called his bed.

Okay, better than this is impossible. Jongin swam out of his cavern to pick up Taemin at the elder's house (where he had been for further examination) and…

'Hi!'

'Oh. How did you know where to go?' Jongin asked as he took Taemin's hand.

'I felt you swimming around. You have a very distinct tail.'

Jongin chuckled. 'I do? Is it sexy?'

'Terribly.' Taemin laughed. 'The elder said I was fine. He did scold me for swimming too roughly. Even though that was swimming for my life.'

Jongin hummed. 'I'll check your wounds again tonight.'

'They're fine!' Taemin smiled. 'Really.'

'Still wanna check. I'm your saviour and all.'

Taemin laughed. 'That will once get old, you know.'

'Not to me.' Jongin lured Taemin to his cave as the sun set and heard Taemin gasp as he saw the place Jongin called home.

'It's so pretty here too.'

Jongin scratched his neck. 'You think so? I cleaned up for you.'

'You shouldn't have. I normally live in a manatee's sty.'

Jongin chuckled. 'Well, me too. Normally. It seems so roomy now.'

Taemin chuckled and circled the room once, stopping at the gems. 'Oh, those are beautiful too! Did these get gifted to you?'

'Ah, no, I found them.'

'In my tribe it's custom to gift gems to one another, as they are the eggs of the gods of the deep.'

'Gods of the deep?' Jongin asked. 'What's that?'

'They are almighty creatures that live in the deepest part of the deep ocean. They reside so deep within the ocean, we could never reach them. They make the earth quake and the sea tremble. But they gift us with safety and they punish us with challenges.'

'Oh… We don't really… I mean, I've never heard of that. Or them.'

'I noticed.'

'I hope you don't mind.'

'I don't mind. So these gems are not holy to you?'

'No, I just think they're pretty and thus I collect them.' Jongin smiled. 'But I do like the idea of sharing them with others, so they might enjoy them too.'

Taemin chuckled. 'You don't have to.' He turned and saw the weapons and armour. 'I like that we're different to one another. It shows that the gods are whimsical, like the stories tell. Because you're so close to the surface, you have to fight more, so you care more about protecting yourself. The fact that I was attacked by sharks is such an exception, in my life I've never heard of it happening to someone in my tribe.'

'We mostly gear up to protect ourselves from the humans, if we have to.' Jongin said. 'Sharks and most other creatures have learned their lessons.'

'… Humans?'

'You don't know the humans?'

'… Are those humans fish as well?'

'No, no, humans are… Uh… They're like us, but they have no tail. They have legs like crabs, but only two of them.'

'Oh. Where do they live?'

'On the land.'

'Oh. They're not nice?'

'They're evil. They have nets to hunt fishes and they kill whatever they please.'

'They sound horrible.'

'Believe me, they are. They're also pretty dumb. Some of my friends peek at them when they are on the beaches.'

'Why don't they just stick to the land?'

'We don't know. They can't even swim that well. They have these boats and ships they use to get around on the water, but those are stupid too. If they hit something they sink.'

'… I have no idea what you're talking about.'

Jongin chuckled. 'Tomorrow I'll bring you to a sunken ship.'

'Looking forward to it.'

'Actually, a dead human rests in that ship, so you'll see one too.'

'Lovely.' Taemin said, a cheeky smile on his face. 'Are they still evil when they're dead?'

'Great shark bait.'

'Even better.' Taemin said and peeked in Jongin's bedroom. 'Oh! Why is  your house so nice?'

Jongin chuckled. 'It's not that special. Are you tired?'

'Kind of…'

Jongin hummed and pulled Taemin into the bedroom. He checked the boy's tail and side one last time, concluded they were fine and healing properly and watched as the boy curled up on the bed. He curled up around him and wrapped his arms around the boy's chest, holding him tightly.

 

Jongin woke up and felt Taemin sleeping soundly in his arms. The elder of the two tightened his arms around the boy's chest and pressed his lips in the boy's neck. Taemin was sleeping, so Jongin felt more comfortable showing his love to the boy like this and…

'Hmmmm, Jongin…'

And he liked it. Jongin smirked and pressed more kisses on the boy's neck and ear. Taemin gave soft mewls and turned in Jongin's arms.

'Jongiiiin…' Taemin opened his eyes and smiled. '… What were you doing?'

'… Nothing.'

'I can see that you were doing something!'

'… What do you mean? You can see that…'

'Your eyes seem naughty.'

'That's because I am very nau…'

Taemin pushed him away playfully and spun to check his body. 'What did you do?'

'I didn't do anything!' Jongin said, trying to force his eyes to look less guilty about it.

'Hmmm… I had a very nice dream at the end though…'

He really did like it! 'I was kissing you.'

'I KNEW IT!' Taemin grinned. 'I knew you were doing something!'

'Yeah, yeah, you liked it though!'

'Meh.'

'Hey!' Jongin grinned. 'Don't say that!'

Taemin swam out of the bedroom and peeked out the cave entrance. 'It's cloudy again today.'

'No, no, no, no changing the subject here.' Jongin pulled Taemin back to the bedroom and pinned him down on the stone slab, pillows and blankets. He felt their tails intertwine and he stroked the boy's cheek. 'You liked it.'

Taemin kissed Jongin's nose. 'I did. Now…' He slipped away from Jongin's grasp. 'It's cloudy, so shall we go find that … chip?'

'Ship.'

'Yes, that! Shall we go?'

Jongin smiled and took Taemin's hand. 'First we need some breakfast. The hunters should have come back by now with food for us.'

Taemin hummed and let himself be led to the main reef where the hunter distributed the food. Many looked up to stare at Taemin, still uneasy about his presence, and soft murmurs rolled across the reef. Jongin glared back at them and turned back at Taemin when he felt his hand leave his. 'Taemin?'

'I'll wait at your cavern…'

'You don't have to…'

Taemin swam away and Jongin bit on his lip. 'Fucking depths. Are you happy now?' He shot glares at all the staring mermen. 'He can't help it.'

'He doesn't belong here, Jongin, he stands out.' One of them pointed at the reef, indicating its colours. 'He's a stranger.'

'And he will stay here, for now.' The elder swam up to the reef. 'We take care of the wounded. He's healing quickly and will soon be able to go home. If you disagree with our policy on the wounded, let me know and we'll leave you for dead when you're wounded. We wouldn't want to push our policy on you since you clearly disagree.' The elder took his share of food. 'Don't make me do things I would regret later.'

Jongin quickly took his and Taemin's food and swam away too. He twirled to find out where Taemin went and saw him hiding under the reef, near the entrance of Jongin's cave. He heard the soft sobs of the younger merman and Jongin's heart broke. He swam up to the boy, wrapped his tail around the other's tail and gave Taemin a kelp wrap with crab. 'Here you go.'

'Maybe you should bring me back to where you found me.' Taemin said softly, hiding his tears.

'Nope.'

'They don't want me here.'

'I want you here. And the elder wants you here.'

'The only two in an entire tribe.'

'The most important two in an entire tribe. Also, the captain doesn't mind you staying here. And Sehun likes you.'

'Jongin.'

'… Ignore them. The elder told them off.'

'I can't ignore them.'

'Taemin.'

They looked at each other.

Jongin kissed Taemin's lips. 'Ignore them.'

'… Show me the ship.'

 

Days later, Taemin and Jongin approached the trench where Jongin had found the boy. The last few metres they swam in silence. As soon as the gaping depths were visible, Jongin stopped. 'Here we are.'

Taemin sighed. 'Stay close to the surface, pass the current and dive down.'

Jongin nodded at the words of their elder. 'We'll spend the night here and you'll… You'll leave at dawn.'

'It's for the best Jongin.'

'You keep saying that but I don't believe it.'

'It is.'

Jongin quietly made their camp and watched as Taemin looked around the reefs and seabed. 'What are you looking for? Food?'

'No, no…'

Jongin swam up to him. 'Can I help?'

'Nope.'

Jongin hummed and took Taemin's hand. 'Please?'

'You really can't.'

Jongin sighed and swam back to the small camp he made out of the wood of his previous camp. He stared at the merman as he searched around and when he heard a content hum, he got up again. 'Taeminnie?'

'Found it!'

'What?'

Taemin swam over to Jongin and gave him a pearl. 'My gift to my saviour.'

Jongin smiled and shook his head. 'You don't have to give me gifts. You know how you can thank me.'

'Jongin.'

'… Thank you.' Jongin accepted the pearl. 'I'll keep it close to me, always.'

Taemin curled up on the seabed and Jongin curled up around him again. Humming a soft tune, Taemin felt Jongin fall asleep quickly. Taemin's mind fell away in prayers for the pearl he had given Jongin, begging the gods to bless the pearl with the best fortune imaginable.

The next morning, at dawn, Jongin cocked up his head. He swam around the camp and concluded that they were still safe. Taemin made sure his sapphire was around his neck and gulped. 'So, it's time.'

Jongin swam up to Taemin. 'I can't convince you?'

'I hope you won't try.' Taemin said, neither confirming or denying anything.

Jongin sighed. 'It was nice to be with you… It is nice to be with you…'

'I'm glad you rescued me and took care of me.' Taemin smiled. 'I'm glad to have been with you the last few weeks. I'll miss you.'

'I'll miss you too.' Jongin said softly, his hands on Taemin's head, his tail twisting around Taemin's. He felt Taemin's hands on his chest and he kissed the boy's forehead. 'I really like you.'

'I really like you too.'

'I…' Jongin couldn't think of anything anymore. No matter how many times he had rehearsed this moment in his head, he couldn't think of anything to say anymore. No words could encompass the pain and turmoil he felt in his heart and stomach right now.

'I hope you won't say goodbye.' Taemin said.

Jongin looked at him. 'Huh?'

'I would say "see you later" rather than "goodbye".' Taemin said. 'The Gods are capricious after all.'

Jongin smiled warmly. 'See you later.' He kissed Taemin's lips lovingly.

Haven been released of the captivity of Jongin's lips a few moments later, Taemin smiled. 'See you later.' He kissed Jongin's lips and swam away quickly. Just a few feet below the surface Taemin swam and swam until he could hardly see the cliff he and Jongin had parted at. He peeked down.

Did he pass the forbidden current already? How could he tell? How far did he get flung out by the current when he escaped it?

…

Drop something and try to keep seeing?

Taemin didn't have anything he could drop but the sapphire and he wouldn't drop that. He would rather be swept away by the current than drop that. Maybe look for something else but moving water in an ocean.

Oh! The monsters on the stone spikes weren't monsters! They were ships! So if he could spot those above water, he would have found the current! Taemin peeked above the surface and spun. There! Taemin smiled. He had passed the current so now he would have to dive down and find his tribe. Just find one place to orientate himself and go home from there.

Taemin dove down and soon found himself in the comforting darkness of the depths. He swam around a bit aimlessly, guessing the right direction by following the strong current the other way around.

Taemin hummed. How far did he go from his home? He was sure he could find it again. He recognised some vibrations in the water, how some of the water bounced of mountains and ran through the coves in the deep.

He should go left here. Changing direction, he tried to orientate his senses again. The elder had been right. It took him more effort to feel with his lateral line after the attack than before the attack. But nonetheless, he found his mojo again and dove deeper.

'TAEMIN?!'

Taemin smiled. He recognised that swim everywhere! 'Minho?!'

'Thank the Gods!' Minho caught him midswim and they spun around for a moment. 'Taemin! We thought that… The forbidden current! And the sharks! We thought that…'

'That I died.'

'Yes.' Minho said and held Taemin out before him, focussing his eyes on the boy. 'You look healthy and strong and… What happened?'

'Can we discuss that at home and not here, in the middle of an apparently goblin shark infested ocean?'

Minho nodded and took Taemin's hand, leading him to the tribe. Taemin's tribe was not located on a reef but in the mountain side. Their home was located in a cavern system, with a lot of open spaces in the mountain. Taemin sighed satisfied when he entered the familiar mountain halls again and found his own small cave again. 'Aaah, home sweet home…'

'You take a rest here.' Minho said. 'I'll go fetch… everyone.'

Taemin nodded and heard Minho yell around that Taemin had returned. Taemin grabbed the sapphire and held it tightly.

'I made it Jonginnie. I can't wait to see you again.'

Yifan and Jonghyun swam in. 'TAEMIN!' They shot towards him and hugged him tightly. 'I thought I wouldn't ever see you again!'

More and more mermen flooded into the room, all hugging Taemin and chirping their happy praises to the Gods below. The elder swam in and everyone made room, allowing the elder to hug Taemin, look at the damages Taemin's body had endured and bless him even more.

'Taemin, what happened?'

Taemin started to talk about everything that had happened. From the sharks, to the current, to being found, the sapphire, the attack of the itajara and spending time with Jongin.

'This merman, Jongin, he sound very important to you.'

Taemin blushed lightly. 'I… He is. He saved me.'

'Tonight we'll hold him and his tribe in our prayers, blessing him with the best fortune possible. Now Taemin, follow me and let's take a look at those tailfins of yours.'

 

Jongin watched as the boy swam away, quickly vanishing in the blue ocean. He felt like he was being punched in the stomach. Multiple times. Very roughly. With a trident. Jongin sighed. The problem was that he had to wait for Taemin to come to him again. He couldn't go after him or look for him, he didn't know where Taemin's tribe was and he couldn't go that deep. Well he could, but he would be rather blind.

He looked at the pearl in his hand and kissed it softly. 'I can't wait to see you again Taeminnie.'

 

* * *

 

Jongin swam back to the cliff where he had parted with Taemin about three months ago. He had come back here multiple times and last time he had made a decision. If he and Taemin were to reunite, travelling in between tribes would not only take a long time, his tribe's mermen would not appreciate Taemin's presence for some unknown ( ~~racist~~ ) reason.

Jongin taken the time to plan out his idea, gather the things he needed and drop them off at the cliff. He had inquired at his elder, gotten his permission and blessing, asked Sehun to help him out a bit with gathering and finally today, he would start working.

His pickaxe firmly in his hand, Jongin swung at the cliff side. The first rubble came down and Jongin smiled contently. The first of many, many pieces of rubble that would fall into the abyss. Jongin just hoped there was no fish below with a headache right now.

Swinging strongly and decisively every time, he quickly dug into the mountain. Since this was a cave he made rather than a cave he found, he had taken struts from shipwrecks and planes to support the roof of the cave. The elder had said it would probably be unnecessary to do so, but safety came first. Carving out the cave, he smiled satisfied as it reminded him of home.

He started to bring sand into the cave, filling a trench around the edge of the cave with sand for his luminous plants. With a chisel he carved out shelves and adorned the entrance and opening to the bedroom with fine stonework. He had stolen more pillows and blankets, filling the bedroom up once more with a nest he could sleep in peacefully together with Taemin.

More and more plants started to light up the cave. Jongin smiled it his toils started to pay off quickly. Jongin finished up his work with something he had seen in the house of the elder. Chiselling out small hinges and jamming steel bars through them, Jongin used a ship's hatch to the hold as a door to keep out sharks and other unwanted guests. Using his chisel to make small windows in the door to look outside, Jongin sighed satisfied.

He swam out to gather his last things, until he heard a whale call. It wasn't often the whales swam by to Jongin turned to look at a herd of blue whales swimming by casually. They were so long and big and majestic and…

White thing?

Jongin swam up a bit, getting closer to the whales and the white…

Was that…?

Taemin?

'TAEMIN?!'

'Jongiiiin!' Taemin swam over to him rapidly and fell into a hug. 'Oh I missed you so much!'

'Please don't tell me you're only here for a visit.' Jongin said softly.

Taemin chuckled. 'I didn't swim for a day to just come and see you for a few hours now, did I?'

Jongin smiled and took the boy's hand. 'I prepared for you, for us.'

'Oh?'

Jongin pulled open de door and pulled Taemin inside. Taemin smiled as he saw the cave Jongin had made and hummed as he saw the small bedroom for them. 'Oh, Jonginnie, is this for us?'

'Only the best for you.' Jongin smiled and hugged Taemin tightly. 'I missed you too.'

Taemin hummed and wiggled himself more tightly against Jongin, their tails intertwining. 'I just can't believe I found you.'

Jongin chuckled. 'Didn't my distinct sexy tail help you?'

'Not that far away.' Taemin chuckled. 'I like this place though. It's… It's right in the middle of our homes.'

Jongin nodded. 'Yeah! And… You know. It's safe now with the hatch and the lights and… Maybe we can stay here over longer times. Together.'

Taemin smiled and kissed Jongin's lips. 'Good idea.'

'And maybe… One day… We could just move here. Forever.'

Taemin cocked up his head. '… Start our own tribe?'

'Well. I don't know.' Jongin said softly. 'I just know that… That I love you.'

'I love you too.' Taemin smiled.

Jongin hummed and took Taemin to the bedroom. 'I'm sure our guppies would be beautiful.'

Taemin laughed and curled up on the bed. 'Are you close to shedding your eggs then?'

'… I was hoping you were.' Jongin curled around Taemin and kissed the back of Taemin's neck.

'Well, nope.'

'Dammit.'

And in the safety of their new cave, they fell asleep. 

**Author's Note:**

> THERE WE ARE! MERMEN TAEKAI! HOLY CRAP!
> 
> For a slight moment I was doubting smut. But eh. Fluff and romance is enough.   
> Again I want to give out a huuuuuuuge shout out to Kyzuzu and their friend (to whom I don't have a tumblr) for sharing this prompt on Tumblr. Go check out their tumblr and behold the fanarts!


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